Abuse Suits Force Church To Seek Ch.11

Published 8:00 pm, Monday, April 8, 2002

Hundreds of lawsuits alleging abuse in Indian schools have forced the Roman Catholic order that administrated them to file for bankruptcy protection.

The Oblates of Mary Immaculate is facing 2,500 separate claims for compensation from alleged victims of physical and sexual abuse in residential schools run by the order.

"We deeply regret having to take this action but we really have no choice," the Rev. James Fiori said in a statement issued Tuesday.

The Oblates order has paid $500,000 in legal bills over the past two years, and expects an additional $400,000 in legal costs each year until the situation is resolved, according to Fiori.

"According to our auditor, at the current rate of spending, we will fully deplete our resources by 2006 and will be unable to meet existing obligations if certain protective measures are not taken," Fiori said.

Students at the residential schools say they lost their native language and culture and often faced physical and sexual abuse. The schools were most prominent in the decades after World War II.